Official Communique #2

So today was a roaring success!

We hosted various workshops throughout the day from first-aid to digital security. We curated various film exhibitions from local artists and activists. We were able to provide free vegan food all day, and all manner of artwork was created to adorn the space. All in all we received overwhelming support for our ongoing project and with much respect and gratitude we would like to thank everybody for the time and energy devoted, it was truly beautiful to see so many people interacting with the space we have worked so hard to make safe, available and free for everybody to enjoy!

Though so many different people constitute our collective, and one can rarely speak on behalf of everyone, it can certainly be said that we are all immensely happy with the result. All of the sleepless nights, and the physical, mental and emotional energies dedicated towards preparing today’s event have been reciprocated by what felt like a truly sustainable and authentic experience of community.

Community often rings hollow as a word evacuated of it’s meaning: it is a buzzword circulated in many of the most anti-communal discourses of today’s social order. Capital cannot create real community, so it must often imagine or enforce its terms. Today proves that the possibility of resistance still burns strong amidst the grey tides ebbing at Britain’s shores: it proves that we can share a radically alternative notion of community. Demonstrating that in the same way we can reclaim space, we can this use space to reclaim human relations with one another and this planet we share: we can change what this world means to us.

HOWEVER:

Barclays Bank have taken notice of our efforts. They would rather see this building return to a decaying site of empty space as long as it meant maintaining the existing order and ensuring their profiteering remains unchallenged. We need everybody’s help to resist their attempt to evict us; this means co-ordinating with as many other people as possible to spread the word of our struggle and come together to fight back!

Fighting back will be our next concern. You cannot evict an idea: especially one that has rooted itself in so many hearts and minds. So…watch this space.

Solidarity with global struggle!

Radical Bank Collective x

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One thought on “Official Communique #2”

We agree that open day was a positive, uplifting and productive day for both those who have been previously involved with the Radical Bank and those experiencing it for the first time. However, we are wary of using terms like Success. This infers an end or a product to what we are doing, and indeed that this should or needs to be measurable. The paradox we must embrace is that, we’re strongest when we admit we have no idea what we are doing. Many of us understand the use of this space to be a learning process, and an experiment that is live, active and changeable. These aspects are just as real as our more visible uses of the space. We feel that an almost unilaterally positive affirmation, although necessary in this time of immense pressure that has been levied on us by the state, a huge corporate law firm and Barclay’s bank, somewhat trivialises our dense network of concerns, as well as making us to look as though we have a feel-good saviour complex. When we should be reflecting on our open day for it’s awkward questions, it’s intense encounters; we can’t afford to get caught in a loop of congratulating ourselves. We must remind ourselves that at best we are not great, we are simply OK, but in itself that is a strong ideological position.

A different viewpoint… Whilst we are using this space, the value of what we are doing cannot be confirmed solely through products- like a food bank, a workshop or a film screening. We are not service providers, and that is not a role we seek to assume. Nor should we be seen to simply offer ‘good-vibes’. Our use of this space is about manifesting and making visible an alternative, trying out different modes of organising as we go along. When we reflect on ourselves, we can’t talk only about the things that are provided, we have to be constantly and productively analytical. This will keep us moving.

Lets avoid Success. We should be critical of this term, both in ourselves and our actions but also in the general sense and use of the word. We are here, and this is happening.